Method for controlling a compressed air installation and controller and compressed air installation for employing such a method

Abstract

Method for controlling a compressed air unit which consists of several compressed air networks ( 2 and 3 ) having at least one commonly controllable component, characterized in that, on the basis of measurement data of at least one of the above-mentioned compressed air networks ( 2 and 3 ), at least the above-mentioned common component ( 11 ) is controlled by at least one controller ( 20 ).

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A method for controlling a compressed air unit comprising the steps of:
 providing at least two compressed air networks, each of the at least two compressed air networks having at least one main gas compressor and an outlet connected to a pressure vessel, said at least two compressed air networks having at least one common auxiliary controllable component configured to supplement a supply of compressed gas to at least one of the at least two compressed air networks, wherein the at least one common auxiliary controllable component consists of a compressed air source, a processing device for compressed air, a gas compressor, and an outlet connected separately to only the outlets of the compressed air networks via at least a first controllable valve and a second controllable valve; 
 selecting at least one of the at least two compressed air networks to supplement the supply of compressed gas; and 
 supplementing a supply of compressed gas to the selected one of the at least two compressed air networks by controlling at least one of the first or second controllable valves using at least one controller on a basis of pressure data from at least one of the pressure vessels of the selected compressed air network. 
 
     
     
       2. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least one controller determines the operational condition of at least the at least two compressed air networks, the main gas compressors, and the at least one common auxiliary controllable component. 
     
     
       3. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least one controller comprises a plurality of controllers for controlling the compressed air unit, wherein none of the plurality of controllers determine the operational condition of-at least the at least two compressed air networks, the main gas compressors, and the at least one common auxiliary controllable component. 
     
     
       4. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein a plurality of controllable components of the compressed air unit are controlled so as to each be operational for a certain time span to thereby stagger the wear of these different controllable components, wherein the plurality of controllable components comprise at least the main gas compressors of the at least two compressed air networks and the at least one common auxiliary controllable component. 
     
     
       5. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein a plurality of controllable components of the compressed air unit are controlled such that, on the basis of the measurement data, the maintenance of each of said controllable components is carried out simultaneously, wherein the plurality of controllable components comprise at least the main gas compressors of the at least two compressed air networks and the at least one common auxiliary controllable component. 
     
     
       6. The method according to  claim 1  further comprising a step of executing an energy saving algorithm wherein an optimized energy consumption for at least a part of the compressed air unit is obtained by setting the operational point of at least one of the at least one main gas compressors of the at least two compressed air networks and the at least one common auxiliary controllable component of the compressed air unit such that the energy consumption will be as low as possible. 
     
     
       7. The method according to  claim 1  further comprising a step of executing an algorithm assuring that energy consumption costs, maintenance costs, repair and replacement costs of the at least one main gas compressors of the at least two compressed air networks or the at least one common auxiliary controllable component of the compressed air unit and/or the compressed air unit as a whole are always restricted to a minimum. 
     
     
       8. The method according to  claim 1  further comprising a step of executing a control algorithm wherein the compressed air unit is controlled such that at least one parameter is conformed to a certain directional value, wherein the at least one parameter is maintained within a certain range by controlling at least one of the at least one main gas compressors of the at least two compressed air networks or the at least one common auxiliary controllable component of the compressed air unit by the controller. 
     
     
       9. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least two compressed air networks operate at different pressures. 
     
     
       10. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the controlling of the at least one of the first or second controllable valves is continuously adjusted. 
     
     
       11. The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the pressure vessels are connected to compressed air users. 
     
     
       12. A method for controlling a compressed air unit comprising the steps of:
 providing at least two compressed air networks, each of the at least two compressed air networks having at least one main gas compressor and an outlet connected to a pressure vessel, said at least two compressed air networks having at least one common auxiliary controllable component configured to supplement a supply of compressed gas to at least one of the at least two compressed air networks, wherein the at least one common auxiliary controllable component consists of a compressed air source, a processing device for compressed air, a gas compressor, and an outlet connected separately to only the outlets of the at least two compressed air networks via at least a first controllable valve and a second controllable valve; 
 selecting at least one of the at least two compressed air networks to supplement the supply of compressed gas; and 
 preventing a fluctuation in pressure, flow rate, and/or dew point by supplementing a supply of compressed gas to the selected one of the at least two compressed air networks by continuously controlling the at least one common auxiliary controllable component and at least one of the first or second controllable valves using at least one controller on a basis of pressure data from at least one of the pressure vessels of the selected compressed air network, wherein the at least one controller is connected to at least the at least one common auxiliary controllable component, a pressure sensor configured to measure the pressure data, and the at least first controllable valve and second controllable valve. 
 
     
     
       13. A method for controlling a compressed air unit comprising the steps of:
 providing at least two compressed air networks, each of the at least two compressed air networks having at least one main gas compressor and an outlet connected to a pressure vessel, said at least two compressed air networks having at least one common auxiliary controllable component configured to supplement a supply of compressed gas to at least one of the at least two compressed air networks, wherein the at least one common auxiliary controllable component consists of a compressed air source, a processing device for compressed air, a gas compressor, and an outlet connected separately to only the outlets of the compressed air networks via at least a first controllable valve and a second controllable valve; 
 selecting at least one of the at least two compressed air networks to supplement the supply of compressed gas; 
 supplementing a supply of compressed gas to the selected one of the at least two compressed air networks by controlling at least one of the first or second controllable valves using at least one controller on a basis of pressure data from at least one of the pressure vessels of the selected compressed air network; and 
 wherein a plurality of controllable components of the compressed air unit are controlled such that, on the basis of the measurement data, the maintenance of each of said controllable components is carried out simultaneously, wherein the plurality of controllable components comprise at least the main gas compressors of the at least two compressed air networks and the at least one common auxiliary controllable component.